METHOD FOR PREDICTING RESIST PATTERN SHAPE, COMPUTER READABLE MEDIUM STORING PROGRAM FOR PREDICTING RESIST PATTERN SHAPE, AND COMPUTER FOR PREDICTING RESIST PATTERN SHAPE

The contour shape of an aerial image formed on a resist by projecting a test pattern onto the resist via a projection optical system is computed. The shape of a resist pattern formed by the exposure using the test pattern and the development process is measured. A correction model indicating the relationship between the amount of characteristic of the contour shape and the amount of correction determined in accordance with the difference between the computed contour shape and the measured shape of the resist pattern is created. The contour shape of an aerial image formed on a resist by projecting an arbitrary pattern onto the resist via the projection optical system is computed. The shape of a resist pattern corresponding to the arbitrary pattern is predicted by correcting the computed contour shape of the aerial image, using the amount of correction given by the correction model in correspondence with the amount of characteristic of the contour shape.